As long as the Steelers and Pats aren't in the big game I'll be fine...but having the Pack or Jets in there wouldn't be that tolerable either (only from a "members of my are family are fans of the latter two teams and would irritate me beyond no end" standpoint)

And THATS why they call it the WILD card weekend. Wow. Hopefully things get to NORMAL next weekend and the Oats hand the Jets their ass AGAIN! I hate the Steelers, but I think I'd rather the Pats faced them for the AFC then the Ravens. meh either way, I'm sure the Oats will gameplan appropriately. 1st things 1st. B-E-A-T the J-E-T-S!!!

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Over? Did you say "over"? Nothing is over until we decide it is!Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Hell no!

No write-ups on the AFC Championships games this weekend? Crasher are you still eating lunch???

Steelers/Ravens & Jets/Pats are both going to be better than this year's Superbowl.

It's in production now

I rushed last week and I wasn't pleased with the effort.... so I wanted to be more on my schedule with it......

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Pay homage to the INCREDIBLE scoring goalie!!!! :-)

I saw CRASHER trip a kid on skates and then he stole the kids lunch money and slapped his mom when she came to pick him up.. All because the kid looked at his crease

CRASHER's official list of high stick victims from this forum:gionta182, devilsfan26 .... WHO'S NEXT??

2005 Fantasy Football League Champion... Bow to my Football knowledge !!!!!!

2003-04 NJDevs.com winner of the Masterton Award for Dedication to the Devils(still proud of that one !)

4, Four (!?!?) Time (2005-2008) NJDevs.com winner of the Whoever the damn Award for the funniest poster in the land is named after...(geesh... post pressure, but I seem ok with it!)TWO TIME (2005, 2006) Award Winner and the man who can show Jeremy Roenick what a REAL loudmouth is all about.... hell this mouth roars SO loud, they retired the DAMN AWARD!!!! But how do you be emotional about an award for being most emotional when you're sharing it?

And the road to the NFL's Final Four begins on Saturday! Eight teams, all are worthy(yes even you Seattle...and maybe the Jets too, I'll get to them later )....lots to

talk about, and with just four games to ramble about, so let's get to it!!!!

Saturday, January 15th:4:30 pm:Ravens at Steelers:

Break out the ice packs, the medkits and the body bags! This one is ALWAYS a slobberknocker (though it sucks that this got the worst time-slot of the weekend, hell its probably the best game and most intense rivalry of the weekend we got too!), just a shame the NFL screwed up and didn't put the Seattle/Bears game here...oh well.....not like you won't be watching this"not for the faint at heart" competition anyway!

How they got there:The Steelers got here pretty simple, defense...timely offense....Mendenhall and the un-sack-ability of Rothelsberger (any normal QB would have went down a hundred times behind that sh!t o-line inda 'Burgh!), the Steelers D boasts playmakers like no other team and there's talk of Aaron Smith coming back too which makes that defense even better...the Ravens got here by being one step behind the Steelers and then pounding like veal a "not ready for prime time" Chief team, and exposing Matt Cassel for the piece of football AIDS I knew he was!!

How the Ravens can win:Well they did win once, and almost won the second game too, the Ravens should be able to get a pass rush on Ben, but he's used to that...keeping Mike Wallace and Mendenhall in check will help too...this is a big game for Joe Flacco too, does he step up and take the next step to where the Big Boys play (and no I don't mean WCW), or does he not get it done and show he's still a step behind the elite QBs (and give the U-Del nation another reason to cry after they blew it in the one true college football title game)....controlling the game with the running backs and converting 3rd downs....jesus I'm turning hockey cliches into football ones here! So just to break the cliche I give the coaching edge to Harbaugh over Tomlin (he gets too conservative at times)

How the Steelers can win:They are the better team...they are home, they have the better QB, and I like the Steelers pass rush and with Smith and Polamalu coming back and a week off to relax and get ready, that's a big advantage, more so with the Ravens all beat up even...and I am aware the difference isn't that big...and the coaching edge to the Ravens can negate that, but the Steelers have been there enough with this team and always seem to find a way to pull it out.....

What will happen:The better teams do tend to win this time of year, and the Steelers are a better team... they have just that much more of a playmaking offense and more guys who can do it on defense.... this will be no bore orblowout and you may need a band-aid or two for just WATCHING it... but somehow... like that always seem to.... whip out the Horrible hankies... they live on one more week!

8pm:Green Bay at Atlanta:Well the night game this week is a DAMN good one....these two teams met up about six weeks ago and it was as good and well-contested a game as you were gonna see this year... add in the Packers have a running game andmaybe the Saints took some of the aura out of the Georgia Dome by beating them in week 17 (hey at least you getWrestlemania in Atlanta this year!)....this one promises to be just as good!

How they got there:The Packers got here thanks to a timely Jay Cutler interception (and ensuing Chris McCabe Giant fan meltdown, aswe joyously invited the Giants to the "no playoffs couch of shame"... and that Eli jersey was never the same since!)and then a solid job of keeping Mike Vick in the kennel, and when you don't let the dog run loose, you're in control! (as good as that was I didn't need to hear Clay Matthews saying he sacked Vick for dog lovers everywhere, you didit cause it's your fvcking JOB you turd!!)....and Atlanta got here through a balanced offense, home field dominancean MVP-type season from Matt Ryan, and a more-physical defense then you'd think!

How the Packers can win:No defense in the NFL is designed to make more plays and go for six with them then the Packers do (shut up Steeler fans, they do it better).... no QB is better in football, and more so on the run, then A-Rod is and out of NOWHERE last week the Packers found a running game, welcome to the spotlight James Starks! With a good running game the Packers may be the one team left that has no weaknesses.....this is also Atlanta's first "pressure game" under this current group... how will they respond to the pressure... will the city of Atlanta care? Will Ted Turner nap in the front row?? Oh questions (and the Georgia Dome isn't exactly one of the NFL's feared stadiums to play in)

How the Falcons can win:20-2 in the dome is Matt Ryan.... and a lot of this is gonna be ON HIM, can he and Roddy White and Gonzo makeenough plays without making the critical mistake.... can the Atlanta defense get to A-Rod, and is this running game a one game wonder? It could be (though the Eagles are good defensively).... Atlanta was 7-1 at home for a REASON after all....

What will happenI like the Falcons...a LOT... I really do, I think they're a VERY good football team that made the big jump from "okay" to "contender" and this core is young enough outside of a few that they should be back for a few years.... but I really felt that if the Packers got in, they are good enough to go all the way....so let me use a TNA phrase in the land of WCW..."sorry 'bout yo' DAMN LUCK"....A-Rod finds a way late to lead the Packers to one game from the BIG one......Sunday January 17th:1pm:Seattle at Chicago:And now we shift gears to Sunday... and maybe the LEAST likely playoff game ever.... well for this week.....the Cinderella Seahawks try to keep the glass slippers on and hope they can dig into the icy turf of Chicago!!!

How they got there:The Bears took as strange a path as any team ever to a bye week....good defense and passing the ball left, rightand sideways tend to NOT mix in the NFL, more so when you look at the sub-par receivers they have in Chicago....having an all-purpose back like Matt Forte helps, and the defense stayed healthy and was able to cover up for a fewCutler/Martz mistakes... and not to mention Special Teams play that was truly capable of breaking ANY game open....and I think we all know how the 7-9 Seahawks got past the Saints by winning the "first to tackle Marshawn Lynch" match... sadly, the Saints are still trying too.......

How Seattle can win:They DID win in Chicago once before this year.... (go figure their only legit road win of the season), whenHasselbeck's on he's better then Jay Cutler.... the Bears WILL tackle Lynch a few times so it won't be as easy, butthe Seahawks do boast a defense that can make plays too.... pity this game wasn't on Saturday... word is that PeteCarrol is good with high-priced athletes in big games on Saturdays (yes I stole the line, eat me )... but this team isobviously better then their record, and they better milk this run NOW, they're gonna pay for it next year.....a JayCutler implosion in his first playoff game with the city of Chicago on his ass.... is VERY likely

How Chicago can win:The better team, at home in the nasty weather(22 is the high, geesh it's like that HERE...oi), the Bears will play better... ok.... ACTUAL.... defense on the Seahawks, the special teams can and will make plays... maybe not touchdowns but a short field is still a big plus... and how often does Cinderella have two lightning bolts to toss atopponents?? And not to mention the Bears won't be caught off-guard (I don't think the Saints were, I think they were just flawed and got chewed out for it) And I need to add the best line of the week from Scott Wedsel on Maddog Radio: "It rains there too much, their uniforms are ugly and Marshawn Lynch is a jerk, I hate Seattle!!"

What will happen:I'm a sick and evil and twisted human being... and "all of this has happened before....all of it will happen again", the Seahawks will walk into the windy city with NOTHING to lose, play loose and free, not make any mistakes and the pressure's gonna get to Jay Cutler... and he's gonna fold... which means Mike Martz won't run the ball even more.... like I said, it's a twisted feeling.... but I'd have considered it more LAST week if I didn't rush and write the damnthing before Thomas and Ivory got dropped on IR.....least the Blackhawks won

4:30pm:Jets at Patriots:The game I need to say the LEAST about... the two teams did it all for me, be it Rex's normal bullsh!t each and every week... Wes Welker's foot-a-palooza comments (sponsored by Dr. Freud himself!)... the whole Hard Knocks stuff and all the crap all year long.... need I say more?? Y'all know the drill and I wanna go get a fvckING SNACK!

How they got there:The Patriots got here through balance on offense, growth and maturity on defense from the young players, the best coach and QB combo in the league, and just being able to spread you out and beat you at whatever you can't stop them from doing! The Jets got here through (least to me) the strangest of formulas.... they don't haveanything I consider a big time team to need.... no big-time pass rusher... no big-time QB, yes they run the ball and they stop the run like no other... yes the secondary is good... but a secondary's only supposed to be as good as your pass rush... it's all madness I tell ya! (and I think Holmes and Edwards are overrated WRs), but yet... here they are... it kinda makes sense... I lived my life being the exception to every rule, why not be haunted by on that IS?

How the Jets can win:Ball control.... the best way to stop Brady is deny him the football.... you can brag all you want about the corners on the WRs all day, but the Patriot backs and tight ends will crucify the jets... getting a little pressure on Brady won't hurt either... and slowing down the running game of Green-Ellis and Joe Theismann's cock-tease won't hurt either! If they can keep it close, the Jets have a sick habit of pulling out games they don't deserve to be in, that can serve them well here.....maybe another gift from Cromartie on special teams too.....

How the Patriots can win:SLAP THEM IN THE FACE WITH THEIR WOODCOCK!!! (ok, I'm done now I swear!), they have the better QB, they don't lose at home... the better coach, a rested team.... and like I said, the RB-TE dominance over the Jets in the middle should be more a factor then it was last week (the Pats are better in all those spots then the Colts), the Jet offense doesn't seem capable of putting out 60 minute efforts at all this year... cash in and make a play when they're not clicking.... plus isn't Tomlinson due some annual toenail injury about now??? Be the better team which they are and use their own short game to control the clock and not let the Jets be able to stroll down the field in 8-10 minute chunks by owning the ball yourself!

What will happen:﻿I think I kinda made my case already... like with the Packers I think no one's stopping New England in the AFC, and it just happens to be the Jets turn on the rotisserie grill.....too good, too deep, and no big weakness that the Jets can cash in on....and add the mutual hatred here and there will be no quarter given!

Edited by CRASHER, 14 January 2011 - 03:25 PM.

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Pay homage to the INCREDIBLE scoring goalie!!!! :-)

I saw CRASHER trip a kid on skates and then he stole the kids lunch money and slapped his mom when she came to pick him up.. All because the kid looked at his crease

CRASHER's official list of high stick victims from this forum:gionta182, devilsfan26 .... WHO'S NEXT??

2005 Fantasy Football League Champion... Bow to my Football knowledge !!!!!!

2003-04 NJDevs.com winner of the Masterton Award for Dedication to the Devils(still proud of that one !)

4, Four (!?!?) Time (2005-2008) NJDevs.com winner of the Whoever the damn Award for the funniest poster in the land is named after...(geesh... post pressure, but I seem ok with it!)TWO TIME (2005, 2006) Award Winner and the man who can show Jeremy Roenick what a REAL loudmouth is all about.... hell this mouth roars SO loud, they retired the DAMN AWARD!!!! But how do you be emotional about an award for being most emotional when you're sharing it?

...note to self... never use facebook as the typing and format editor... IT BLOWS!!!!!!!!

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Pay homage to the INCREDIBLE scoring goalie!!!! :-)

I saw CRASHER trip a kid on skates and then he stole the kids lunch money and slapped his mom when she came to pick him up.. All because the kid looked at his crease

CRASHER's official list of high stick victims from this forum:gionta182, devilsfan26 .... WHO'S NEXT??

2005 Fantasy Football League Champion... Bow to my Football knowledge !!!!!!

2003-04 NJDevs.com winner of the Masterton Award for Dedication to the Devils(still proud of that one !)

4, Four (!?!?) Time (2005-2008) NJDevs.com winner of the Whoever the damn Award for the funniest poster in the land is named after...(geesh... post pressure, but I seem ok with it!)TWO TIME (2005, 2006) Award Winner and the man who can show Jeremy Roenick what a REAL loudmouth is all about.... hell this mouth roars SO loud, they retired the DAMN AWARD!!!! But how do you be emotional about an award for being most emotional when you're sharing it?

I saw CRASHER trip a kid on skates and then he stole the kids lunch money and slapped his mom when she came to pick him up.. All because the kid looked at his crease

CRASHER's official list of high stick victims from this forum:gionta182, devilsfan26 .... WHO'S NEXT??

2005 Fantasy Football League Champion... Bow to my Football knowledge !!!!!!

2003-04 NJDevs.com winner of the Masterton Award for Dedication to the Devils(still proud of that one !)

4, Four (!?!?) Time (2005-2008) NJDevs.com winner of the Whoever the damn Award for the funniest poster in the land is named after...(geesh... post pressure, but I seem ok with it!)TWO TIME (2005, 2006) Award Winner and the man who can show Jeremy Roenick what a REAL loudmouth is all about.... hell this mouth roars SO loud, they retired the DAMN AWARD!!!! But how do you be emotional about an award for being most emotional when you're sharing it?

So let's see..... the Packers came out and destroyed the Falcons like it was a Madden '11 game....

And oh let's talk a little Baltimore Ravens football shall we

Key drops by the possession receivers of DOOM in the 2nd half, and the Steeler WR's made some HUGE plays (Sanders and Wallace are underrated playmakers)
Ray Rice.... from RUTGERS.... the big fumble that really turned the game around....oh boy!
Flacco a terrible INT in the 3rd.....
and the Steelers LIT UP the "Vaunted" Ravens defense in the 2nd Half
Hey at least Billy Cundiff made all his kicks!!!

...... say something funny Manta!!!!!!

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Pay homage to the INCREDIBLE scoring goalie!!!! :-)

I saw CRASHER trip a kid on skates and then he stole the kids lunch money and slapped his mom when she came to pick him up.. All because the kid looked at his crease

CRASHER's official list of high stick victims from this forum:gionta182, devilsfan26 .... WHO'S NEXT??

2005 Fantasy Football League Champion... Bow to my Football knowledge !!!!!!

2003-04 NJDevs.com winner of the Masterton Award for Dedication to the Devils(still proud of that one !)

4, Four (!?!?) Time (2005-2008) NJDevs.com winner of the Whoever the damn Award for the funniest poster in the land is named after...(geesh... post pressure, but I seem ok with it!)TWO TIME (2005, 2006) Award Winner and the man who can show Jeremy Roenick what a REAL loudmouth is all about.... hell this mouth roars SO loud, they retired the DAMN AWARD!!!! But how do you be emotional about an award for being most emotional when you're sharing it?

I saw CRASHER trip a kid on skates and then he stole the kids lunch money and slapped his mom when she came to pick him up.. All because the kid looked at his crease

CRASHER's official list of high stick victims from this forum:gionta182, devilsfan26 .... WHO'S NEXT??

2005 Fantasy Football League Champion... Bow to my Football knowledge !!!!!!

2003-04 NJDevs.com winner of the Masterton Award for Dedication to the Devils(still proud of that one !)

4, Four (!?!?) Time (2005-2008) NJDevs.com winner of the Whoever the damn Award for the funniest poster in the land is named after...(geesh... post pressure, but I seem ok with it!)TWO TIME (2005, 2006) Award Winner and the man who can show Jeremy Roenick what a REAL loudmouth is all about.... hell this mouth roars SO loud, they retired the DAMN AWARD!!!! But how do you be emotional about an award for being most emotional when you're sharing it?

That's an extremely disappointing performance by the Ravens, from their point of view. All the things Crasher mentioned, plus letting a receiver get past the safeties for a bomb on third-and-19. Awful.

That's an extremely disappointing performance by the Ravens, from their point of view. All the things Crasher mentioned, plus letting a receiver get past the safeties for a bomb on third-and-19. Awful.

I'm not shocked about the third-and-19 play. The Ravens D has been susceptible to the big play all year. Just watch week 17 when Carson Palmer's dead carcass drove the Bengals down the field with no timeouts to the 2 in 30 seconds or the MNF game where the Texans made big play after big play to send the game to OT. What bugged me was the Steelers weren't coming back in this game unless the Ravens gave it to them, and they did. Good on that Steeler for causing the Rice fumble, but that just shouldn't happen. The Steelers were having trouble getting a first down and they gave a dead team the ball inside the 30. You could feel the Steelers and the crowd get confidence in .5 seconds. Then add the terrible Flacco throw and a botched Center-QB exchange...brutal. Steelers took the lead without having to drive for a TD.

I will say this though...the holding call on the punt return TD was a weak-as-sh!t call. I loved watching the replay twice as dierdorf tried to find the penalty. The Steelers defender fell down to try and get a call and got one. Ravens still had their chances after that including a 1st and goal.

Question. And I know you can easily blame TJ, but did anyone think for a second Flacco had a chance at driving for the game tying score against the Steelers D? The Ravens get incredible field position thanks to an awful squib kick (can any team figure out how to properly kick a ball late in the game where it doesn't have a chance at a giant return like Cromartie last week, but also not like the one the Steelers did or how the Saints were kicking to Washington either?). First Flacco misses a wide open Heap for 20 yards by a mile then throws an even worse deep sideline pass where Mason has to make an amazing play for it not to be an INT. He did throw a great pass on 4th down though.

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"The Stanley Cup has fallen from the Stars. The new millennium has its first Stanley Cup Champion, and it's the New Jersey Devils." Mike Miller calling the Devils winning the Stanley Cup.

"It goes to the captain and then there are handoffs during a skate around the ice" Mike Emrick as Scott Stevens is being presented the Stanley Cup.

We'll find out next week...they had all they could handle in Lambeau against a Bears team at 90% intentsity just a couple weeks ago, assuming lightning doesn't strike twice they'll have to play them at Soldier Field with all the marbles on the line.

Of course part of me wants to see another upset just for the absurdity of a 9-9 Seahawks team hosting the NFC Championship

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"The Devils have high standards, that's the difference. We have a standard to live up to every year, and a couple of teams in our area don't have the standards we do." - Pat Burns

The New Jersey Devils win Stanley Cups everywhere:-NHL record for most road wins in the playoffs - 10-1 in '95 and 10-2 in '00-NHL record for most home wins in the playoffs - 12-1 in '03

Two #1s bite the dust. Just goes to show that playoff seedings are meaning less and less in the NFL...we're approaching NHL status in terms of seeding significance.

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THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!

Great job Bill. Way to have your guys prepared. Embarrassed twice in a row at home in the playoffs.

And if hear one more word about Brady's unbeaten streak at home...0-2 at home in his last two in the playoffs. How about that streak?

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THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!

I really have to sit here and wonder why in the blue hell did the Patriots try to become a ground n pound team today.... ran the ball WAY too much... it almost felt like they overrated the film from the Colts last week and thought they had something there.....

Least I'm back in the top 3 in my picks pool again......

0

Pay homage to the INCREDIBLE scoring goalie!!!! :-)

I saw CRASHER trip a kid on skates and then he stole the kids lunch money and slapped his mom when she came to pick him up.. All because the kid looked at his crease

CRASHER's official list of high stick victims from this forum:gionta182, devilsfan26 .... WHO'S NEXT??

2005 Fantasy Football League Champion... Bow to my Football knowledge !!!!!!

2003-04 NJDevs.com winner of the Masterton Award for Dedication to the Devils(still proud of that one !)

4, Four (!?!?) Time (2005-2008) NJDevs.com winner of the Whoever the damn Award for the funniest poster in the land is named after...(geesh... post pressure, but I seem ok with it!)TWO TIME (2005, 2006) Award Winner and the man who can show Jeremy Roenick what a REAL loudmouth is all about.... hell this mouth roars SO loud, they retired the DAMN AWARD!!!! But how do you be emotional about an award for being most emotional when you're sharing it?

THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!